Counterintelligence News for the week of:

December 24-30, 2006

Carroll T. Robinson NSA Senior Executive

Carroll Thaddeus Robinson, 82, an electrical engineer who became a senior executive at the National Security Agency, died Dec. 22…(Washington Post, 30 Dec 06)

Russia asks Britain to quiz tycoon on ex-spy death

Russian prosecutors have asked Britain to question exiled tycoon Boris Berezovsky as part of the investigation into the death of former Russian agent Alexander Litvinenko, Interfax news agency said on Friday….(Reuters, 29 Dec 06)

Mystery man caught on CCTV may hold key to poison plot

Detectives investigating the murder of Alexander Litvinenko are trying to trace a Russian businessman who flew to Britain at the same time as a consignment of deadly polonium-210 was allegedly smuggled into London. The man was spotted on a flight from Hamburg sitting beside Dimtri Kovtun, another Russian whom German police are investigating for trafficking the radioactive material used to poison the former KGB spy. Officers have studied CCTV footage from airports at Hamburg and London and are understood to believe that the two men were traveling together….(Times Online, 29 Dec 06)

British Mum About Mercury Allegations

British detectives said Thursday that they were unaware of evidence supporting Russian prosecutors' claims that there were dangerous mercury traces in London and Moscow, and that former Yukos co-owner Leonid Nevzlin was possibly tied to former FSB agent Alexander Litvinenko's death…..(Moscow Times, 29 Dec 06)

Russia blames ex-oligarch with spy killing

Russian investigators believe a former shareholder of oil firm Yukos ordered the mysterious killing of Kremlin critic Alexander Litvinenko. The investigators suspect that Loenid Nevzlin, who lives in exile in Israel, ordered the murder of Litvinenko…(UPI, 29 Dec 06)

Bizarrely, Kremlin fingers Israeli in ex-spy's death

In the latest installment in the bizarre and seemingly unending case of the former Russian spy who was poisoned to death by a rare radioactive substance, a report was released today stating that Moscow is pointing accusatory fingers at a Russian Jew living in Israel. Russia's prosecutor general said that the government was investigating the possibility that Leonid Nezvlin…(Israel Insider, 29 Dec 06)

Giving secrets a bad name

…The automatic declassification, which applies to all material at least 25 years old unless agencies have sought exemptions for it, will include hundreds of millions of pages from the FBI, the CIA and the National Security Agency….(Washington Times, 29 Dec 06)

Messages to Spies Are Coded but Not Hidden

...Tune it to 6855 or 8010 kHz. On the hour, you might hear a girlish voice repeating strings of numbers monotonously in Spanish. "Nueve, uno, nueve, tres, cinco-cinco, cuatro, cinco, tres, dos . . .," went one seemingly harmless message heard last month on a Grundig radio. It was the Cuban Intelligence Directorate or Russian FSB broadcasting coded instructions from Havana to spies inside the United States….(New York Daily, 29 Dec 06)

Legendary Soviet agent Boris Gudz dies at 104

Russia's oldest Soviet-era security agent, Boris Gudz, who helped eliminate the legendary MI-6 super agent, Sydney Reilly, in the large-scale Operation Trest in 1921-26, has died at the age of 104, the KGB's successor said Friday. "To his last day, he was full of spirit and plans. He was a charismatic, well-educated and intelligent man with a sharp sense of humor and interest in life and people, and it was hard to believe he was a century old - so shining were his eyes and so profound was his thinking," read an obituary compiled by the FSB….(RIA Novosti, 29 Dec 06)

To trap a spy

Boris Gudz is 100 years old. But sitting in his Moscow flat, the former Soviet agent still clearly remembers the day in 1925 when he helped lure Britain's master spy Sidney Reilly to imprisonment and execution. Andrew Cook hears his story.…(Guardian, 7 Oct 02)

Carroll T. Robinson NSA Senior Executive

Carroll Thaddeus Robinson, 82, an electrical engineer who became a senior executive at the National Security Agency, died Dec. 22….(Washington Post, 29 Dec 06)

Patriarch of Russia security services dies at 105

The oldest Russian intelligence and counterintelligence officer, Boris Gudz, died on Wednesday in his 105th year…(Itar-Tass, 29 Dec 06)

Libya's Gaddafi suggests spy link in HIV case

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi on Friday defended a court's decision to sentence five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor to death for infecting more than 400 children with HIV, but said mystery surrounded the case…"The important thing is why the medical team injected the children with AIDS. Who ordered you -- was it Libyan intelligence, American intelligence, Israeli intelligence or Bulgarian intelligence?...(Reuters, 29 Dec 06)

Romanian president to inspect handover of old communist-era Securitate files

…Romania's Securitate spied on the country's 23 million citizens, and had an estimated 700,000 informers, some as young as nine, when former dictator Nicolae Ceausescu was overthrown in December 1989. Some contents of the files have been made public in recent months, revealing that politicians, journalists and other public figures collaborated with the dreaded Securitate…(International Herald Tribune, 29 Dec 06)

Jang Min-ho Admits to ‘Ilsimhoe-Contact with North Korea’
Jang Min-ho (44), who was apprehended on charges of creating the pro-North group “Ilsimhoe,” admitted in court that he created the organization and contacted North Korean officials…..(Donga, 29 Dec 06)

China spies worry ASIO

The national spy agency is on a recruitment drive for foreign language specialists amid reports China is stepping up espionage activities in Australia…..(Border Mail, 29 Dec 06)

DNI Awards $2 Million in Hush-Hush Money

Director of National Intelligence John D. Negroponte awarded $200,000 grants earlier this month to 10 scientists in the intelligence community, one of whom could not be named and several of whom declined to be interviewed, for projects whose details remain secret….(Washington Post, 29 Dec 06)

Reyes: U.S. Intelligence 'Manipulated'

Incoming House Intelligence Chairman Silvestre Reyes says he'd rather figure out how to stabilize Iraq and bring the troops home than get bogged down investigating what went wrong….(AP, 29 Dec 06)

Chinese whispers - could it be Harold Holt?

…The feared influx of Chinese spies has forced the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation to recruit Chinese-speaking intelligence officers and analysts and surveillance officers to counter the threat….(Sydney Morning Herald, Op-Ed, 29 Dec 06)

Spy Agency Tangled in Sex Scandal

…According to the National Intelligence Service (NIS), the 42-year-old woman began work there in 1986. Since 1993 the woman, who was married, started to have frequent private meetings and drinks with a senior company official….(Korea Times, 29 Dec 06)

Two Pakistanis arrested for espionage

…The two, identified as Mohammad Adil Anjum and Abdul Shakoor, were picked up by Uttar Pradesh's Special Task Force (STF) from Qaiserbagh area in downtown Lucknow…According to their confession, the duo were working for the Pakistani Army and were engaged in gathering vital information from the Lucknow-based Central Command headquarters of the Indian Army….(IANS, 28 Dec 06)

Army interpreter to be tried over claim he spied for Iran

...Cpl Daniel James, 44, who is charged under the Official Secrets Act 1911 with passing information which would be "directly or indirectly useful to the enemy", appeared before City of Westminster magistrates. At the hearing, the Territorial Army soldier repeatedly mouthed the words "I'm innocent" to the public gallery, jabbing a finger to his chest, and, as he was led away, he called out: "Not guilty….(Belfast Telegraph, 28 Dec 06)

British soldier: I am no spy

…James, 44, who was born a Shia Muslim, was arrested last week after an MI5-led operation. He is charged with the most serious form of espionage under the rarely-used Section 1 of the Official Secrets Act….(Sun, 28 Dec 06)

10 People Showing Signs of Polonium-210

…The Health Protection Agency said those affected had not suffered enough exposure to cause illness in the short term, and the long-term risk was also very small. Seven of those who tested positive were staff from the Pine Bar in London's Millennium Hotel, which Litvinenko visited on Nov. 1, the day he became ill…(AP, 28 Dec 06)

Spy death - Yukos link dismissed

…Russian prosecutors have confirmed that they are investigating the possible role of Leonid Nevzlin in the poisoning of Mr Litvinenko. Alex Goldfarb, one of Mr Litvinenko's closest friends, said it was "sheer nonsense" to suggest that Mr Nevzlin, who is living in exile in Israel, and other Yukos figures wanted by the Russian Government, could have ordered Mr Litvinenko's murder in London last month. Mr Goldfarb said the Russian government was trying to shift the spotlight of suspicion away from itself….(Guardian, 28 Dec 06)

Exclusive: Unabomber's Secret Code Cracked

A decade after the feds tracked him down, CBS 5 Investigates has uncovered exclusive new information about Unabomber Ted Kaczynski, including a secret code he developed, and the confessions revealed as the code is broken….(CBS5, 28 Dec 06)

Search for killer of ex-spy a daunting task

…More than a month after he died, Litvinenko's murder presents Scotland Yard police detectives and MI 6 intelligence agents with what some of them are calling the most complex criminal investigation faced by British authorities since the end of the Cold War. In interviews, several law enforcement and intelligence officials described a minefield of investigative, cultural, and diplomatic challenges. While they say the "radioactive fingerprints" left by the isotope polonium-210 used to kill Litvinenko will help them close in on his killers, they are less confident at being able to corroborate information and generate a prosecution in Russia….(Boston Globe, 28 Dec 06)

Litvinenko handed over files on Yukos case to Nevzlin before death

Yukos ex-owner Leonid Nevzlin can be involved in poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, Russian Prosecutor General’s Office says. As the prosecution believes, there too many facts pointing to the fact that contractors of murder of the former KGB officer could be the same people, who tried to poison Yukos ex-employee Dmitry Kovtun…(Regnum, 28 Dec 06)

Leonid Nevzlin Gets Polonium and Mercury

… Prosecutor General's Office announced yesterday that it is investigating a possibility that former co-owner of YUKOS Leonid Nevzlin might be involved in the poisoning of former FSB officer Alexander Litvinenko with polonium-210, and an assassination attempt against his business partner Dmitry Kovtun in London….Kommersant, 28 Dec 06)

Russia claims Yukos links to ex-spy's murder

The Russian Prosecutor General's Office has produced a new twist in the murder investigation of former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko, by claiming a link with Yukos oil executives….(New York Times, 28 Dec 06)

Litvinenko’s Contact Questioned in Italian Jail

The Italian contact of murdered former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko was questioned for six hours on Wednesday in a Rome jail by prosecutors, the Reuters news agency reports. Mario Scaramella has been in Rome’s Regina Coeli prison since Christmas eve, when he was arrested at Naples airport after flying home from London. He denies wrongdoing and has not been charged with any crime…(MosNews, 28 Dec 06)

Scaramella questioned in Rome over arms trafficking allegations

…It was at the end of October that Mr Scaramella, 37, called former the FSB agent Alexander Litvinenko, asking for an urgent appointment. The two men met at an Itsu sushi restaurant in Piccadilly, London, on 1 November…Mr Litvinenko initially blamed Mr Scaramella for poisoning him and the Italian's name figured prominently on Russian and Chechen websites as the guilty party. But for the British police, Scaramella was never a suspect…(Independent, 28 Dec 06)

Gerald R. Ford, 93, Dies; Led in Watergate's Wake

Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr., 93, who became the 38th president of the United States as a result of some of the most extraordinary events in U.S. history and sought to restore the nation's confidence in the basic institutions of government, has died…(Washington Post, 28 Dec 06)

It's back-to-school time for an FBI in transition

…In an effort to change the famously insular and hidebound organization, the FBI has sent more than 2,000 top agents and supervisors to management school at Northwestern….(Houston Chronicle, 28 Dec 06)

Hayden's Hands-On Style Changes Tone at CIA

On Mondays at 8:30 a.m., the top 20 CIA staff members gather in the Operations Center on the seventh floor of the agency's headquarters in Langley. The pace is quick -- no one even sits down -- as the staffers tell their director, Gen. Michael V. Hayden, what to expect in their areas of expertise over the next 48 hours. The meeting highlights the sharp change in tone at the agency since Hayden took over from his predecessor, Porter J. Goss. A former congressman, Goss was not used to dealing with a large staff of senior managers; instead, he worked primarily through a handful of personal aides, most of whom he brought from Capitol Hill….(Washington Post, 28 Dec 06)

Hunt for CIA 'black site' in Poland

…In September 2006, President Bush admitted what had been suspected for a long time - that the CIA had been running a special program to transport and interrogate leading members of Al-Qaeda, away from the public spotlight…The hunt has been on ever since to locate the secret prisons, or "black sites" as they are known…..(BBC, 28 Dec 06)

A Witness to History: New Milford man supervised suspected saboteurs

…The year was 1944 and the agents, Erich Gimpel, a German, and William Colepaugh, an American defector, were believed to have been sent on a mission to sabotage strategic American installations. On Wednesday, the death of 91-year-old Mary Forni, a woman in Maine who spotted the agents shortly after they landed, evoked personal memories for a New Milford man who was stationed at an U.S. Army prison in New York City, where the agents were taken after their arrest. "They were dressed in civilian clothes and they were nervous," said Charles Linkler, now 91, who was a sergeant with the military police and prison guard detachment at Fort Jay on Governor's Island….(News Times, 28 Dec 06)

Secret Fort Miles base played a vital role in the Cold War

It was so super secret and essential to the Cold War effort, the U.S. Navy did not reveal the highly classified SOSUS program until the early 1990s…SOSUS, the U.S. Navy Sound Surveillance System, has been called one of the most impressive engineering feats of the early Cold War….(Cape Gazette, 27 Dec 06)

Australia doubles its spy numbers since 2001

An influx of Chinese spies has forced Australia's home espionage agency into a recruiting drive to counter the threat as well as that posed by Muslim extremists, a newspaper report said on Thursday. The Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO) has doubled the number of foreign-language speakers in its ranks since 2004, with most newcomers fluent in Chinese…(Reuters, 27 Dec 06)

Macedonian military intelligence chief sacked over smuggled army weapons

…Lazar Elenovski said military intelligence failed to prevent the new weapons from leaving army warehouses. The defense minister said another two senior military intelligence officers were also removed. He did not name the three officials….(AP, 27 Dec 06)

Spy drive to tackle Chinese

ASIO has stepped up espionage against Chinese spies and Muslim extremists by more than doubling in only two years the number of intelligence officers from non-English-speaking backgrounds….(Australian, 27 Dec 06)

Japan Revives Intelligence

Japan’s government has set up a new service to efficiently protect secrets of ministries and departments against foreign intelligence, said Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki. So Japan appears absolutely resolved to bid farewell to the legacy of the WW2 and turn into a state with powerful armed forces, intelligence and counterintelligence…(Kommersant, 27 Dec 06)

Credit Suisse manager to remain in jail during Romanian probe

A Romanian court overruled an earlier decision to free a Credit Suisse Group manager, meaning he will stay in jail for another month during a probe of state asset sales, defense and prosecution lawyers said….(Bloomberg, 27 Dec 06)

State Bans Funds For Academic Travel to Five Countries

Academics are mounting a legal challenge to a Florida law that bans state funding for travel to Cuba and four other countries designated as terrorism sponsors….(New Standard, 27 Dec 06)

Sally T. Briggs, Intelligence officer, CIA, Leesburg

Sally Thorpe Briggs, 78, of Leesburg, who retired as an intelligence officer with the Central Intelligence Agency, died Dec. 19…(Loudon Times-Mirror, 27 Dec 06)

The GOP's $3 Billion Propaganda Organ

…In an Internet essay on recent turmoil inside the Times, Archibald also confirmed claims by some former Moon insiders that the cult leader has continued to pour in $100 million a year or more to keep the newspaper afloat. Archibald put the price tag for the newspaper’s first 24 years at “more than $3 billion of cash.”…(Consortium, 27 Dec 06)

Leonid Nevzlin Arrives in America with a Bang

Interfax news agency reported yesterday that former YUKOS co-owner Leonid Nevzlin was taken into custody in the United States. Russian Interpol, that report stated, had informed U.S. authorities of his presence. Nevzlin himself told Kommersant, however, that he had had no problems with his trip to America. Migration authorities simply informed their Russian colleagues of his presence in the country. …(Interfax, 27 Dec 06)

Italian Link in Litvinenko Case to Be Questioned

…Mario Scaramella was arrested at Naples airport on Sunday after flying home for Christmas from London, where he had been in hospital after testing positive for the radioactive isotope that killed Litvinenko last month….(Reuters, 27 Dec 06)

Khodorkovsky Likely to Face Fresh Charges

In what appears to be the latest government attack on the Yukos oil company, jailed founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky and his associate Platon Lebedev have been transferred to another detention facility in Siberia and could face fresh charges, Khodorkovsky's lawyers said….(Moscow Times, 27 Dec 06)

Accused 'spy' appears in court

…Daniel James, 44, had his case transferred to the Old Bailey for a preliminary hearing on January 12 and was refused bail. The salsa dancer acted as an interpreter and aide to General David Richards, the Commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan….(Life Style Extra, 27 Dec 06)

Soldier accused of passing secrets to Iran in court

…Corporal Daniel James, 44, will make his second appearance at City of Westminster Magistrates' Court in London charged under Section 1 of the Official Secrets Act with communicating information "useful to the enemy". Details of his identity have not been officially disclosed and much of the previous hearing last week, where he was remanded in custody, was held in camera because of what the judge described as a "possible prejudice to national security"…(Times Online. 27 Dec 06)

Trial for 'spying-charge' soldier

…Corporal Daniel James, 44, of Brighton, who was born in Iran, appeared before City of Westminster magistrates charged under the Official Secrets Act 1911. He is accused of "communicating to another person information that may be directly or indirectly useful to the enemy" - widely believed to be Iran. He was remanded in custody until a preliminary hearing on 12 January. …(BBC, 27 Dec 06)

Spy suspect in Moscow, lawyer says

…The suspect, known only as Paul William Hampel, left Montreal Sunday night, after the Russian consulate there issued travel documents identifying him as a Russian citizen…"Mr. Hampel" was arrested at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport in Montreal on Nov. 14, carrying $7,800 in five currencies, two digital cameras, a shortwave radio, three mobile phones and five smart cards storing phone information. He said he was a 40-year-old Toronto businessman. ….(Globe & Mail, 27 Dec 06)

'A gold mine' for spy agency

…Experts and officials believe the Russian's mission was not to spy on Canada, but rather to assume the identity of a Canadian so he could travel to the Balkans and collect intelligence for the Sluzhba Vneshney Razvedki, or SVR, Russia's foreign intelligence service. But during the decade he lived a false life in Montreal, "Mr. Hampel" did damage to Canada as well…(National Post, 27 Dec 06)

Alleged spy deported

The alleged Russian spy who adopted the name Paul William Hampel while operating in Canada has been deported to Russia….(Gazette, 27 Dec 06)

Alleged Russian Spy Deported From Canada to Russia

…The man confessed his true identity and Russian citizenship in Federal Court earlier this month. In exchange for his admission, a judge agreed to protect his real name after he told the court he fears for his life and the safety of his family…(MosNews, 27 Dec 06)

Canada kicks out alleged Russian spy

An alleged Russian spy who used the name Paul William Hampel has been sent to Russia, Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day said Tuesday. Hampel was arrested in Montreal on Nov. 14, and a Federal Court judge issued a formal removal order against him on Dec. 4….(CBC, 26 Dec 06)

Italian who ate sushi with Litvinenko is held

Mario Scaramella, the Italian who met Alexander Litvinenko at a sushi bar on the day the former Russian spy was poisoned with Polonium 210, was arrested on his return to Italy from London on Christmas Eve…Scotland Yard said Mr Scaramella's arrest had no connection with the former-KGB agent's death. The Italian has said that he set up the rendezvous to show Mr Litvinenko emails warning that both men were being targeted by Russian assassins….(Independent, 26 Dec 06)

The Khodorkovsky Connection

In the latest news coming out of Russia, Mikhail Khodorkovsky has been transferred within Siberia from a gulag to a pre-trial detention center in Chita for what may be the application of further bogus charges against him. And on Friday, police officials took his father, recently released from hospital, for interrogation…his (Khodorkovsky) is one of a handful of names to appear recently in two otherwise seemingly unrelated stories out of Russia: the mysterious poisoning of the former Russian spy, Alexander Litvinenko, and the decision by Royal Dutch Shell to give in to Kremlin pressure and offer up a large stake in the Sakhalin-2 natural gas project….(New York Sun Op-Ed, 26 Dec 06)

U.S. Blocks Entry of Colombian Senator

…An official with the Colombian DAS intelligence agency said on condition of anonymity that Sen. Dieb Maloof had been barred entry to the U.S. and had his visa revoked….(AP, 26 Dec 06)

Russia Won't Transfer Space Technology

Russia will cooperate with China on space projects, but will not transfer sensitive technologies that could enable Beijing to become a rival in a future space race…(AP, 26 Dec 06)

Thai coup leaders get $15 mln for new spy unit

Thailand's cabinet gave coup leaders 555 million baht ($15.3 million) on Tuesday to run a "Peacekeeping Command" whose job is to maintain political stability through intelligence and psychological operations….(Reuters, 26 Dec 06)

Halder to be next head of Intelligence Bureau

P C Halder will be the next head of the Intelligence Bureau, taking over from E S L Narisimhan who retires at the month-end….(DNA India, 26 Dec 06)

Israeli spies divided over Syria's peace overtures

Israelis are puzzling over the prospect of peace with Syria after their two foreign intelligence agencies gave dramatically different assessments of recent diplomatic overtures from Damascus….(Reuters, 26 Dec 06)

Italians arrest spy's contact

The mystery Italian academic Professor Mario Scaramella spent Christmas Day in jail after being arrested as he flew back from Britain. Scaramella, 37, was held by officers from the Italian police DIGOS unit, as he stepped off a British Airways jet with his partner and two children. He was held on suspicion of arms trafficking, revealing state secrets and slander…(Scotsman, 26 Dec 06)

Litvinenko's lunch guest is arrested

The Italian investigator who had lunch with the former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko on the day he fell ill has been arrested on suspicion of arms smuggling…Part of the investigation is related to a seizure of grenades, following a tip-off by Mr Scaramella. Four Ukranians were arrested and are currently on trial, but police have expressed suspicions about how detailed Mr Scaramella's information was. He claims the information came from Mr. Litvinenko….(Telegraph, 26 Dec 06)

Nuke spy's pal is held in Rome

Mario Scaramella, the man who lunched with murdered ex-spy Alexander Litvinenko hours before he fell ill, arrives at jail in Rome yesterday… He was quizzed over alleged arms trafficking and revealing state secrets. The probe is NOT linked to that into ex-KGB officer Mr Litvinenko’s murder….(Sun, 26 Dec 06)

Aiding and abetting Cuban intelligence

With the guilty pleas of Carlos and Elsa Alvarez last week, there can be no doubt that the couple aided the Cuban government, an avowed enemy of the United States and the Cuban-exile community. Carlos Alvarez acknowledged that he conspired to secretly pass information to Cuban intelligence agents -- and his wife admitted that she concealed his duplicity…..(Miami Herald, 26 Dec 06)

Litvinenko contact arrested

Mario Scaramella, the Italian academic who was with Alexander Litvinenko at the Itsu sushi restaurant, in London, when the Russian former spy was allegedly fatally poisoned, has been arrested in Naples….(Times Online, 26 Dec 06)

DaimlerChrysler hires ex-FBI head Freeh amid probe

DaimlerChrysler AG has hired former FBI Director Louis Freeh to serve as an independent monitor as it concludes a two-year internal investigation into cases of suspected bribery by company representatives, the automaker said on Tuesday….(Reuters, 26 Dec 06)

Alarming 9/11 claim is found baseless

The Senate Intelligence Committee has rejected as untrue one of the most disturbing claims about the Sept. 11 terrorist strikes — a congressman's contention that a team of military analysts identified Mohamed Atta or other hijackers before the attacks — according to a summary of the panel's investigation obtained by The Times…..(LA Times, 25 Dec 06)

Alleged US spy killed in Pakistani tribal agency

Suspected Taliban militants Sunday shot dead a paramilitary soldier on charges of spying for the US in a tribal agency, bordering Afghanistan, said officials…(Kuna, 25 Dec 06)

Cloak and Dollar Oversight

… For decades, rival committees and egos have been at the heart of Congress’s failure to effectively oversee the government’s mass of overlapping spy agencies. The results have been so bad that the 9/11 commission said they contributed to the lack of preparedness for the terrorist attacks….(New York Times, 25 Dec 06)

Justice Dept. Database Stirs Privacy Fears
The Justice Department is building a massive database that allows state and local police officers around the country to search millions of case files from the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration and other federal law enforcement agencies, according to Justice officials…(Washington Post, 25 Dec 06)

Contact of Poisoned Russian Is Arrested
The accusations against Mario Scaramella, which include international arms trafficking and slander, are not believed to be directly related to the investigation into the poisoning death of Alexander Litvinenko…..(AP, 25 Dec 06)

Cold War Espionage is as Hot as Ever

… At the professed declaration of the ending of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and western world in 1991, the spy business was apparently left out of the loop. This massive apparatus continued to churn and reinvent itself….(Mexi Data, 25 Dec 06)

Italian link in Litvinenko case arrested

Mario Scaramella, the Italian contact of the dead ex-Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko, flew home for Christmas on Sunday but was arrested in connection with an investigation into arms trafficking…(Reuters, 24 Dec 06)

The spookiest of the CIA's spooks

More than three decades after James Jesus Angleton was fired as the CIA's chief of counterintelligence — and 19 years after his death — he remains a figure of intrigue who keeps popping up, in one guise or another, in novels, nonfiction books and movies….(LA Times, 24 Dec 06)

Iran's Spies

…While it is an open secret that Iranian spies are operating with something approaching impunity in Iraq and also Afghanistan, the hidden story is the activity of Iranian intelligence operatives in western Europe and America. In Britain, France, Holland, Germany and the US, Iranian intelligence has run a relentless covert war against dissident Iranians and exiles from the religious regime for over two decades. After the 1979 theocratic revolution, tens of thousands of Iranians fled their homeland seeking refuge in the West…..(Sunday Herald, 24 Dec 06)

Ex-Spy Death May be Linked to Nuclear Smuggling

German investigators are considering the possibility that polonium-210 was smuggled through the country and might be connected to the radioactive poisoning of a Russian security service defector in London….(RIA Novosti, 24 Dec 06)

How a spy was caught and why he still stands to profit

CAPTURING JONATHAN POLLARD: How one of the most notorious spies in American history was brought to justice, by Ronald J. Olive

…When the loathsome slug Jonathan Jay Pollard was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1987 for stealing more than a million pages of highly-classified documents for the Israelis, U.S. Attorney Joseph diGenova told reporters outside the courthouse, "It is likely he'll never see the light of day again." What Mr. diGenova perhaps did not know was that just prior to Pollard's sentencing (on a guilty plea) there was an obscure rule change stipulating that persons sentenced to life must be paroled after 30 years if they maintained a good record in prison. Thus Pollard could walk out of prison on Nov. 23, 2013….(Washington Times, 24 Dec 06)